White can be forgiven a wry smile in direction of ARU board members

1. White can be forgiven a wry smile in direction of ARU board members

Jake White said before the Bulls game that he had nothing to prove to the Australian Rugby Union, which of course is true, but he would not be human if he did not take extra satisfaction out of the remarkable win in Pretoria. Some might say it wasn't a vintage Bulls team - they certainly imploded in that last 10 minutes - but there is nothing that can take away the bravery and composure shown by the Brumbies. Does it mean that Ewen McKenzie was not the correct man for the Wallabies job? Of course not. He has earned it. But there might be a few nervous glances between ARU board members if White departs Hamilton on Saturday with a Super Rugby trophy to go with a World Cup and Lions scalp.

2. George Smith is still the best No.7 in Australia.

He called time on his Wallabies career after the third Lions Test, but without the scrum and Smith's breakdown work, the Brumbies simply wouldn't be in the final. At times his influence was such that it recalled David Pocock's work in the 2011 World Cup quarter-final. Where others were simply seeing a pile of bodies at the breakdown, Smith was seeing an opportunity to steal the ball, or slow it down. And when the Brumbies needed some momentum for that push in the final minutes, Smith was one of the willing ball carriers. Magnificent.

3. Ben Alexander has character, in spades.

Blown off the field in the third Lions Test, Alexander - with Stephen Moore and Scott Sio - destroyed the Bulls' scrum until some front-row changes later on swung the balance of power. Alexander is never going to convince anyone he is Owen Franks, but he has responded to one of the darkest nights of his career with ample mental fortitude. The Brumbies have used their scrum as a weapon all season, and the contest between Sio and the Chiefs' Big Bens - Afeaki and Tameifuna - on Saturday will have fat men everywhere getting unusually animated.

4. The Brumbies got the detail right.

They started the game with an exceptionally high, perfectly placed kick from Nic White with Clyde Rathbone aiming straight for the catcher armed with serious intent, and it was a tactic that the Bulls could not handle all evening. In fact, it contributed to captain Dewald Potgieter's meltdown in the last 10 minutes, when he refused to take easy penalty shots at goal for fear of being immediately pinned back in his own territory by White's boot. The Brumbies took the Bulls on with a kicking game, and they beat them.

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5. Cruden and Toomua play 10 kilos heavier.

The final will be decided by Aaron Cruden versus the Brumbies' rush defence, but the Chiefs No.10 has much more to his game than a superior rugby brain lodged between his ears. About the 55th minute, he made four tackles, at least one of the them a straight-out try-saver, to get his side out of deep trouble near their own line. The men he felled were, in order: Ryan Crotty, Tom Marshall, Kieran Read and Dan Carter. It is no coincidence that both No.10s in the final punch above their weight when things get sticky.